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North Carolina Legislative Report - March 4, 2016

March 4, 2016

The General Assembly convened for the 2015 legislative long session on January 14 and adjourned September 30. Lawmakers will return to Raleigh for the short session April 25, 2016. The MVA Public Affairs Legislative Report on North Carolina will be distributed on a bi-weekly basis during the interim to keep you up to date on the latest legislative issues facing the state.

Committees

House Select Committee on Education Strategy and Practices

The Committee held its second meeting of the interim over February 24 and 25. The meeting began with the continuation of a discussion on principle compensation scheduled from the January meeting. This was followed by a discussion on early childhood education and included an overview of the current North Carolina early learning programs, the Southern Regional Educations Board’s annual report, Tennessee voluntary pre-kindergarten effectiveness study and an overview of the NC Department of Health and Human Services Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program. Cindy Watkins, President of the NC Partnership for Children discussed Smart Start and its impact on early childhood education. Day one came to a close with a panel discussion between all of the presenters from the day’s meeting.

Day two started with discussion of principle leadership. Members heard from Betty Fry with the Southern Regional Education Board, several turnaround principles, Dr. Steve Tozer from the University of Illinois-Chicago, and Dr. Shirley Prince from the NC Alliance for School Leadership Development. The meeting closed with a discussion of the Every Student Succeeds Act. The Committee will hold its next meeting the last week of March.

The Subcommittee met on Thursday, February 25. Joyce Jones with the Bill Drafting Division reviewed the Subcommittee charge. The first portion of the presentation focused on the Governor’s Task Force on Mental Health and Substance Abuse. Representative Susan Martin (R-Wilson), Chief Justice Martin and Secretary Brajer gave introductory comments regarding the task force and work completed to date. Dr. John Santopietro, Chief Clinical Officer of Behavior Health for Carolinas HealthCare System, gave the Committee an update on the Work Group on Adults. William Lassiter, Deputy Commissioner of Juvenile Justice with the NC Department of Public Safety, gave the Committee an update on the Work Group on Children, Youth and Family. Kurtis Taylor, Executive Director for the Oxford Houses of NC, gave the Committee an update on the Work Group on Opioid and Heroin Resurgence. The next portion of the meeting focused on VIVITROL as a substance abuse treatment option and Dr. Lori Penatzer, National Director Medical Science Addiction for Alkermes, gave a presentation on this issue. Finally, the Committee reviewed the draft joint subcommittee report.

The Committee met on Tuesday, March 1. The meeting began with a presentation on Medicaid enrollment figures for this year. To date, the number of beneficiaries under the Medicaid program has been below estimates generated last year and more conservative budget figures. This presentation led to a separate presentation on the Medicaid budget outlook for the current fiscal year. Due to lower than budgeted enrollment figures, lower than anticipated utilization rates, and lower than estimated costs per beneficiary, expenses in the program are running below budgeted amounts. As of January, program expenses were about $185 million below the budget forecast. The Department now estimates that expenses for the 2015-16 fiscal year will be $250 million to $300 million below the budgeted amount. Next, the Committee heard a presentation from several officials with the Department about the Agency’s activities with respect to Medicaid reform efforts and received a copy of the Department’s Section 1115 draft waiver application. Finally, the Committee heard from the Department of Insurance with respect to recommended statute changes to ensure the solvency of prepaid health plans, which are an important feature of Medicaid reform.

Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on IT

The Committee met on Thursday, March 3. The first portion of the meeting focused on contracts, insurance and liability issues. Ben Poplin with the Department of Insurance gave a report on data security. Legislative Drafting Division staff reviewed online resources and standard contracts. The next meeting topic focused on procurement. Eric Ellis, iCenter Director, gave a presentation on the Innovation Center. Susan Sitze with the Legislative Analysis Division then gave a presentation on state data security laws and government data breaches. Lastly, Maria Thompson, State Chief Risk Officer, gave a presentation on cyber security best practices and data loss prevention.

Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee

The Committee held its third meeting of the interim on Friday, March 4. Marci Wright with DOT began the meeting with an overview of the Equal Opportunity and Workforce Services (EOWES). Bobby Walston with the Division of Aviation presented the recommendations from the Aviation Capital Investment & Aviation Development Task Force. Recommendations included increased funding, education and economic development partnerships and the creation of an Aviation Commission. Scott Saylor, President of the NC Railroad Company, presented the company’s annual report highlighting the economic impact the railroad has across the state. Mike Holder from DOT updated the Committee on streamlining right-of-way acquisitions and Utility Relocations. Finally, representatives from DOT reviewed the Departments proposals for statutory changes in the upcoming short session. The Committee will hold its final meeting of the interim on April 8th at 9:00 a.m.